Sport Slices

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Oilers in town to face the Panthers

Last week
I had my first chance to see Connor McDavid in action. The Oilers
were in Sunrise to play the Florida Panthers. There wa s a
distinctive buzz in the arena. Some of it pertained to the exciting
young Oilers team. But there is also excitement about the Panthers.

They had just completed
that deadly five game road trip to the West Coast. It remains a
difficult chore for all sports teams. Even the Raptors never look
forward to that trip. The Panthers emerged from the trip with five
victories, first time in the history of the franchise.

After picking up my
pass, I headed down the hall to the elevator. Three guys were ahead
of us, turned, and asked directions to the elevator. At that point, I
almost blurted out, “You look quite familiar. Do I know you from
somewhere?” But I bit my tongue and said, “Sure, follow me,”
when I realized it was Wayne Gretzky. He was with his brother Keith,
a former Belleville Bull, and Peter Chiarelli, president and General
Manager of the team. Keith Gretzky is listed in the official guide as
“Assistant General Manager”.

Both the Panthers and
the Oilers have several young, exciting players. With less than a
quarter of the season remaining, it is only natural that they might
slow down a little at this time. Not on this occasion. It was full
tilt all the way. McDavid raced around defencemen to nullify icing
charges. He scooted through the neutral zone to set up two on one
opportunities.

But the Panthers
returned the favour to the Oilers. Huberdeau, Barkov, Trocheck,
Ekblad, Marchessault, Matheson....they keep coming off the bench to
provide the Panthers with spirited play. James Reimer got the nod to
play between the pipes.

Oscar Klefbom opened
the scoring for the Oilers in the first period. He was handed the
puck on a giveaway at the blueline, and ripped a shot into the net.
The period ended with the Oilers leading 1-0.

Alexander Barkov evened
the score at the 21 second mark of the second period on a power play
goal. The teams traded markers during the period. With just 3.9
seconds remaining in the period, Yandle hit Marchessault with a long
pass, and the game was tied 3-3. Plenty of fireworks from both teams.

With almost 8 minutes
gone in the third period, McDavid raced from his own end with the
puck, dropped a pass to his linemate Leon Draisaitl. Leon shuffled
the puck to Kris Russell who hit the twine for the winning goal, his
first of the season.

The Panthers had some
excellent chances near the end of the game. The puck trickled off
Jagr's stick as he stood alone in from of the Oiler net. Moans and
groans, but the red light remained unlit.

Attendance for the game
was listed at 15, 300. There were some empty seats, some of them
going for twenty bucks apiece. Not quite the case at the Air Canada
Centre, nor the Bell Centre. For those of you heading south for a
little sun this spring, it is a perfect opportunity to see the game
at its best.

The Panthers need to
maintain the momentum they picked up on the West Coast. They added
Keith Yandle in the off season from the Rangers. He spent most of his
ten years in the NHL with the Coyotes. When asked about the loss, he
referred to the preceding games: “We just weren't able to get that
one at the end of the game that we needed. We weren't as sharp as we
needed to be coming off the road.”

McDavid Family gathering, with Janet and Wayne Gretzky

That is often the case,
and can be a coach's nightmare. For the Panthers, that is part of the
challenge for the remainder of the season. The Oilers are pretty well
assured of a playoff berth. At that point anything can happen.

Moe Berg-Keeping an Eye on Things

When baseball greats Babe Ruth and
Lou Gehrigwent on tour in baseball-crazy
Japan,in 1934, some fans wondered why athird-string catcher named Moe Berg
was included.
Although he
played with
five
major-league
teams, from
1923 to 1939,
he was a very
mediocre ball
player. But
Moe was
regarded as
the brainiestballplayer of all time. In fact,Casey Stengel once said: "That is
the strangest
man ever to
playbaseball".

When all the baseball stars went to
Japan, MoeBerg went with them and many people
wondered why
he went with
"theteam"

LouGehrig and Babe Ruth

The answer was simple: Moe Berg was
a United
Statesspy, working undercover with the
Office of
Strategic
Services
(predecessor
of today's
CIA).

Moe spoke 15 languages - including
Japanese. And
he had twoloves: baseball and spying.

In Tokyo, garbed in a kimono, Berg
took flowers
to the
daughter of an
American
diplomat being
treated in St.
Luke's
Hospital - the
tallest
building in
the Japanese
capital.

He never delivered the flowers. The
ball playerascended to the hospital roof and
filmed key
features: the
harbor,
military
installations,
railway yards,
etc.

Eight years later, General Jimmy
Doolittle
studied Berg's
films in
planning his
spectacular
raid on Tokyo.

His father disapproved and never
once watched
his sonplay. In Barringer High School, Moe
learnedLatin,Greek and French. Moe read at least
10 newspapers
every day.

He graduated magna cum laude from
Princeton
having addedSpanish,Italian,German and Sanskrit
to his
linguistic
quiver. During
further
studies at theSorbonne, in Paris, and Columbia
Law School, he
picked up
Japanese,Chinese,Korean, Indian,
Arabic,
Portuguese and
Hungarian - 15
languages in
all, plus some
regional
dialects.

While playing baseball for
Princeton
University,
Moe Berg would
describe plays
in Latin or
Sanskrit.

Tito'spartisans

During World War II, Moe was
parachuted
into
Yugoslavia toassess the value to the war effort
of the two
groups of
partisans
there. He
reported back
thatMarshall Tito's forces were widely
supported by
the people and
Winston
Churchill
ordered
all-out
supportfor the Yugoslav underground
fighter,
rather than
Mihajlovic's
Serbians.

The parachute jump at age 41
undoubtedly
was a
challenge.Butthere was more to come in that same
year. Berg
penetrated
German-held
Norway, met
with members
of theunderground, and located a secret
heavy-water
plant - part
of the Nazis'
effort to
build an
atomic bomb.

His information guided the Royal
Air Force in a
bombingraidto destroy that plant.

There still remained the question
of how far had
theNazis
progressedin the race to build the first
Atomic bomb.
If the Nazis
were
successful,
they would win
the war. Berg(under the code name "Remus") was
sent to
Switzerland to
hear leading
German
physicist
Werner
Heisenberg, a
NobelLaureate, lecture and determine if
the Nazis were
close to
building an
A-bomb. Moe
managed to
slip past the
SS guardsat the auditorium, posing as a
Swiss graduate
student. The
spy carried in
his pocket a
pistol and a
cyanide pill.

If the German physicist indicated
the Nazis were
close to
building aweapon, Berg was to shoot him - and
then swallow
the cyanide
pill.

Moe,
sitting in the
front row,
determinedthat the Germans were nowhere near
their goal, so
he
complimented
Heisenberg on
his speech and
walked himback to his hotel.

WernerHeisenberg - he blocked theNazis from acquiring an

atomic bomb.

Moe Berg's report was distributed
to Britain's
Prime MinisterWinston Churchill, President
Franklin D.
Roosevelt, and
key figures in
the team
developing the
Atomic Bomb.
Roosevelt
responded:
"Give my
regards to the
catcher.”;

Most of Germany's leading
physicists had
been Jewish
and had fled
the Nazis
mainly to
Britain and
the United
States. After
the war, Moe
Berg was
awarded the
Medal of
Freedom -
America 'shighest honor for a civilian in
wartime. But
Berg refused
to accept itbecause he couldn't tellpeople about his exploits.

After his death, his sister
accepted the
Medal. It now
hangsin the Baseball Hall of Fame, in
Cooperstown.

PresidentialMedal of Freedom: the highest award

given to civilians during wartime.

Moe Berg's baseball card is the
only card on
display at theCIA
Headquartersin
Washington,
DC.

Belleville's Hanna Bunton is the NCAA Div 1 women's hockey Ivy League Player of the Year.

The former Belleville Athlete of the Year led Cornell to its 13th Ivy League title this season, pacing the Big Red with an overall team-high 26 points on 10 goals and 16 assists. Bunton was second overall in Ivy League scoring with five goals and a dozen points; her two game-winning goals and three power-play tallies tied for top spot.

Bunton, a senior at Cornell (Ithaca, NY) was also named to the Ivy League First All-Star Team. She achieved a plus-5 rating in 31 games overall and ranks in the top-25 in the ECAC for points (17th), assists (17th) and goals (24th); her team-leading five power-play goals and four game-winners rank in the top-five in the ECAC.

Last season, in her junior year at Cornell, Bunton was named an Ivy League Second Team All-Star. She was Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 2013-14 and earned selection to the ECAC All-Rookie Team.

The St. Theresa Secondary School graduate and former Belleville Bearcats girls minor hockey standout has accumulated career totals of 37 goals and 50 assists for 86 points in 122 games with the Big Red — including 12 game-winners, 10 on the power play and two shorthanded.

Cornell captured the six-team Ivy League title this season with an undefeated 7-0-3 record to finish five points ahead of runner-up Princeton (5-3-2). Overall, the Big Red were 19-7-5 in 31 games.

• Need to know: Bunton assisted on the O.T. game-winning goal in the 2013 IIHF U18 women's hockey final as Canada beat the arch-rival Americans 2-1 in the gold medal match.

Monday, February 20, 2017

AProud Canadian in South West Florida

Butch Wilhelm with Rod Spittle

Occasionally, I like to
focus on a fine athletic achievement. If it so happens that a
Canadian is involved, all the better. We have been accused of not
being a terribly proud people. That may be true, but certainly not in
this case.

For many years, I have
followed the golf exploits of Rod Spittle. Rod grew up in the Niagara
area, Chippewa to be exact. They have announced that he is from St.
Catherines and Niagara Falls. No matter. He was fortunate enough to
attend Ohio State on a golf scholarship. Once he graduated, he chose
to stay in the United States to sell a little insurance and play a
little golf.

Around the time of his
fiftieth birthday, he toyed with the idea of trying to make the grade
for the PGA Seniors Tour, for those over 50. Despite some initial
setbacks, he has achieved success on the tour, finishing well and
even winning one event. When he arrived at Naples, Florida this week,
he had no guarantee that they would even let him play. He was the
“Fifth Alternate” on the list of players who would be allowed to
play, if others dropped out.

We ran into Rod, and
his caddy Butch Wilhelm, on the practice range on the day before the
tournament. One after another, he was cracking drives 250 yards down
the middle of the fairway. He mentioned that his wife Ann had
traveled with him from their winter home near Dunedin. Apparently,
she was back at the hotel packing the bags to head to Dunedin because
Rod had not been informed that there was a place for him.

So, on the first day of
the tournament, Rod hung around, just in case. Ten minutes before
the start, he was informed that he was in the field.
“You know, we can't make this up! I was the first alternate last
week, same thing, so I was around for three days. And then I got the
call.”

He
birdied the first hole, and finished four under for the first round.
As he prepared for the second round, I chatted with Butch near the
range. I mentioned that a friend of mine from Belleville had been in
touch with me, and wanted me to ask about Rod's putter grip. It is
called a “P2”, and comes from a local golf guy named Steve Auger.
Butch pulled the club, and we talked about it. The putter head cover
was adorned with Canadian flags.

The "P2 Grip", available from Steve Auger at Black Bear

or at the Loyalist Golf Centre.

“Rod
met Steve at the PGA show recently, and loves the grip. Mind you, he
did make a slight adjustment to it. He reversed the grip, bottom up.”
Rod's wife Ann confirmed that bit of information. He scored rounds
of 68, 68, and 69 to finish in a tie for third with Jerry Kelly and
Jeff Sluman. He pocketed $ 96 000 for his efforts.

Miguel Angel Jiminez

Fred
Couples finished first, 16 under par. Miguel Angel Jiminez from
Malaga, Spain was second, at 13 under par. The victory for Couples
was his 12th
on the PGA Tour Champions, the first since 2014. The win vaulted him
to the top of the Schwab Cub Standings, ahead of Bernhard Langer.
Spittle also made significant gains in the standings.

Bernhard Langer

Langer
won the tournament last year. In fact he has won the tournament three
times in the last six years, but never in successive years. That is a
word of caution to all players in case he plays next year!

Playing
conditions were perfect all week long. The start for the final round
was delayed slightly, due to an early morning fog. Most players felt
that the course at Twin Eagles was in superb condition. Attendance
was up significantly, due, in part, to the presence of John Daly.

John Daly

Rod
and the boys move on to Tucson to play this coming week. He has
earned an exemption into that tournament. When asked whether or not
he might take a little confidence from his play this week, Rod
replied, “Without a doubt. I'm healthy and rested and practiced up
and ready to go This is a great way to get started.”

And
so, the “gentle giant” from the Niagara area made us all a little
proud, this past weekend. The television announcers were really
impressed with his game. They referred to it as the “feel good”
story of the week.

Friday, February 17, 2017

Milt Schmidt, Bruin Legend

According to the original caption to this photo, taken Feb. 25, 1942: “Aircraftman 2nd Class Milton Schmidt is the only member of the RCAF Flyers hockey team whose duties in the Air Force are similar to his spare time job as a hockey star. The Flyers’ star centre man is becoming a physical training instructor, a job for which he appears admirably fitted.” Photo: DND Archives, PL-6907

Major Mat Joost and Joanna Calder, RCAF ~

Milt Schmidt, the last surviving member of hockey’s famed “Kraut Line” and a former member of the Royal Canadian Air Force, died Jan. 4, 2017, in Massachusetts. He was 98, and the oldest living former member of the National Hockey League (NHL).

It was an iconic moment in hockey history.

On Feb.11, 1942, the “Kraut Line” led the Boston Bruins to an 8-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens at the Boston Garden.

Then, as the crowd cheered and the Boston Garden’s organist played “Auld Lang Syne”, members of the rival Bruins and Habs teams hoisted the three members of the Kraut Line – Milton Conrad “Milt” Schmidt, Woodrow Clarence “Woody” Dumart and Robert Theodore “Bobby” Bauer – onto their shoulders and carried them off the ice.They were heading to the Royal Canadian Air Force and the war in Europe that summer.

The three long-time friends from Hamilton, Ontario, had been dubbed the Kraut Line when they joined the National Hockey League because of their German heritage.

“I don’t think I’ll ever forget what happened,” said Schmidt in an interview before he died. “The players on both teams lifted the three of us on their shoulders and carried us off the ice and the crowd gave us an ovation. A man couldn’t ever forget a thing like that.”

On July 23, Schmidt was posted to No. 1 Bombing and Gunnery School in Jarvis, Ontario. Three months later he and Woody Dumart were posted overseas to No. 6 Group (Royal Canadian Air Force), which was part of Bomber Command.

Even overseas, though, they couldn’t leave hockey behind. Both played in the 12-team RCAF League – although as opponents. Dumart’s RCAF Station Linton-on-Ouse team won the championship against Schmidt’s RCAF Station Middleton St. George team.

Schmidt was commissioned on Aug. 17, 1943, and held the rank of Pilot Officer. At this time, he was the Middleton St. George sports officer. Physical fitness was an important aspect of life on any station and as sports officer he oversaw many activities, including basketball, soccer and softball, recreational swimming at Thornaby Baths, as well as intra-unit sports. He was also involved in the station hockey team, which played one game in November 1943 and four games in December at the Durham ice rink.

In the 1943-44 RCAF Overseas hockey season, Pilot Officer Schmidt was on the same team as Bobby Bauer, who had arrived in the United Kingdom that summer. This time, Schmidt’s team beat Dumart’s. This was a special time for Pilot Officer Schmidt as he was promoted to the rank of flying officer on Feb. 17, 1944, and his team won the league championship on March 9.

After the war came to an end, he was posted to No. 1 Repatriation Centre on Sept. 27, 1945, for return to Canada. He was released on Oct. 31, 1945.

Schmidt played with the Bruins for his entire career until he retired in 1955 at the age of 36. During that time, he played in 776 games.

Before going to war, he led the Bruins to two Stanley Cup victories in 1939 and 1941.

Following his return to hockey for the 1945-46 season, he went on to win the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player in 1951. After he retired he coached the team to the Stanley Cup finals in 1957 and 1958.

In 1966 he became assistant general manager and the following year was promoted to general manager. During his tenure in 1970 and 1972, the Bruins took home the Stanley Cup. He moved up to an executive position but then, in 1974, he became the first general manager of the Washington Capitals.

Schmidt remained involved with the Bruins through their alumni team and their “Boards and Blades Club”.

The day following his death, the Bruins honoured Schmidt’s memory before a game against the Edmonton Oilers.

“Yesterday, our Bruins family lost a man we have all come to know as the ultimate Bruin,” the announcer said. “Milton Conrad Schmidt arrived here [at the Boston Garden] in 1936 and, in many ways, he never left… Milt Schmidt embodied everything we know about being a Boston Bruin and no one was prouder to represent the organization, as he had for more than 80 years.”

“Uncle Milty”, as some called him, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1961 and his No. 15 jersey was retired in 1980.

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Mav in Binghampton with the Slap Shot Crew.

Mavety remembers as Slap Shot turns 40

Shown in this publicity shot as a member of the minor-pro Denver Spurs (1968-71), former longtime Belleville Bulls GM-coach Larry Mavety appeared in the 1977 hockey movie Slap Shot while playing in Binghamton. The film celebrates its 40th anniversary this month. (Getty Images)

Happy birthday, Slap Shot.

Yes, the iconic hockey movie turns 40 this month.

"Wow,” says Larry Mavety, speaking via cellphone from his home in Kingston. “That's a long time ago.”

Mavety, the former longtime Belleville Bulls GM-coach, appeared in the Hollywood shinny cult classic filmed mostly in Johnstown, PA, and released in 1977, along with several of his minor-pro teammates then skating in the old North American Hockey League for the Binghamton Dusters.

"Heck, I got more money for five seconds in the movie than I did playing for Binghamton for a whole week,” said Mavety, a rugged defenceman with solid offensive skills. “Then, they fed you on top of that.”

Contrary to a popular local legend, Mavety, now 74, does not appear in the climactic championship game as Clarence (Screaming Buffalo) Swamptown, who terrorizes the hometown Charlestown Chiefs as one of a cast of crazy call-ups by the arch-rival Syracuse Bulldogs.

You actually have to look really hard to find Mavety when, early in the movie, he lugs the puck behind the net and wheels up ice.

He's right. The scene lasts about five seconds.

"Yeah, I remember when I was still in Belleville and the kids would put that movie on the bus all the time and it would drive me up the wall,” said Mavety. “They always wanted to find me in the movie. And they never did.

"I had the big sideburns back then.”

Even with Hollywood mega-star Paul Newman playing the lead role as Chiefs player-coach, Reggie Dunlop, Mavety and his NAHL teammates didn't believe the movie would amount to much.

"At the time, we thought it was a bit of a joke,” said Mavety. “But now. Who would've thought it would turn out like it did? I don't think we ever dreamed that.”

Along with a nice paycheque, Mavety said another bonus from appearing in Slap Shot was the chance to hang out with Newman.

"He was a good guy,” said Mavety. “He talked to everybody.”

Mavety's Binghamton teammate, Rod Bloomfield, was Newman's double for on-ice action scenes. The highscoring forward grew up in Parry Sound playing minor hockey with the great Bobby Orr and was inducted into the town's Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.

Another real-life Binghamton player, Bill (Goldie) Goldthorpe, was the inspiration for the oft-suspended wildman Ogie Ogilthorpe, portrayed in Slap Shot by NAHL player Ned Dowd, whose sister wrote the script.

Hailing from Thunder Bay where he earned pocket money as a junior by digging graves in his spare time, Goldthorpe sported a gigantic blonde afro and piled up 285 penalty minutes in his rookie NAHL season with the Syracuse Blazers.

Goldthorpe has told reporters he's forgotten how many brawls he'd been involved in — on and off the ice. One story suggests that once during his pro playing career he was refused entry into the U.S. and re-entry back into Canada — in the same day.

"He's an interesting person to talk to,” said Mavety. “He doesn't pull any punches. He sent me a T-shirt and on the back it's got printed all the cities where he's been in jail. He wasn't a bad hockey player either, but he had to live up to an image of what people thought he was.”

And that meant he wasn't even allowed to play his own character in Slap Shot.

"No, they wouldn't let him in the movie,” said Mavety. “They didn't know what he'd do.”

Today, Goldthorpe lives in Vancouver and is becoming something of a regular on the public speaking circuit. He'll appear in Kingston Friday to sign autographs at the K-Rock Centre during the OHL game between the hometown Frontenacs and Peterborough Petes being billed as Slap Shot Night.

Mavety is glad his former teammate is now receiving recognition for his behind-the-scenes role, after being shut out of the smashing success of Slap Shot.

"Yeah, now he's getting something out of it,” said Mavety. “I mean, you ask anybody. He's Ogilthorpe. And he never got a nickel for that.”

Mavety, of course, doesn't have a nickel left from the paycheque he received for his brief appearance in Slap Shot. Not even the paystub.

"I used to keep it in my wallet,” he said. “It had Universal Studios, California printed on it. But I don't know what the hell happened to it. I spent the money, but I always kept the paystub in my wallet.

"I guess I didn't pay much attention to it. Now, I wish I had.”

• Need to know: Newman's Reggie Dunlop character was based loosely on former Toronto Maple Leafs coach, John Brophy, who played defence in the old Eastern Hockey League (forerunner of the NAHL) for 18 seasons. Including 10 seasons with more than 200 and one campaign with 325, Brophy never earned less than 100 penalty minutes per season during his nearly 20 years in the league.

Mav was a legendary athlete growing up in Belleville. His father, "Red" Mavety, ran the Maher Shoe Store, and was a fixture in Downtown Belleville. Mav was a superb catcher, playing at the highest level of softball for many years, especially at the Alemite. He is a member of the Belleville Sports Hall of Fame.

Following his hockey career, (check hockeydb.com), he managed and coached for many years.